Dow Jones drops over 780 points late at night, most semiconductor stocks decline, SanDisk falls over 5%, crude oil up over 17% this week

On Thursday Eastern Time, U.S. and European stock markets collectively declined, with Europe’s three major indices and the Dow Jones Industrial Average all down over 1%. The Dow fell more than 780 points intraday, while the S&P 500 and Nasdaq saw slight declines. International crude oil prices surged sharply, with WTI crude rising over 5.6%.

Large-cap U.S. tech stocks had mixed performances: Microsoft rose 1.35%, Amazon nearly 1%, Nvidia up 0.16%; Meta fell more than 1%, while Google and Apple declined over 0.7%.

Chip stocks plunged during the session, with most semiconductor industry chain stocks in the red, and the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index down 1.17%. SanDisk dropped over 5%, Rambus, Canaan Semiconductor, and Applied Materials fell over 3%, Seagate Technology and ASM International declined over 2%. Conversely, Broadcom rose more than 4% against the trend, citing strong earnings outlooks and projecting AI chip revenue to exceed $100 billion next year.

Banking and airline stocks mostly declined: Southwest Airlines fell nearly 7%, United Airlines down over 5%, Goldman Sachs dropped over 3%, JPMorgan Chase and Wells Fargo declined 2%.

Most Chinese concept stocks also fell, with the Nasdaq Golden Dragon China Index down 1.43%. Bilibili dropped over 7%, Tencent Music and Century Internet declined over 4%, Kingsoft Cloud and Miniso fell over 3%, NetEase and NIO declined over 2%. Carvana rose nearly 5%, Atour Hotels gained over 2%.

In commodities, international crude oil prices surged. WTI crude briefly hit a 10% intraday gain, reaching a high that pushed the price up over 5.6% to $78.87 per barrel. ICE Brent crude rose nearly 4%, briefly exceeding $86 per barrel.

Since the start of the week, WTI and Brent crude prices have increased by over 17% and 8.5%, respectively, amid ongoing concerns about disruptions to oil transportation through the Strait of Hormuz.

International precious metals all declined. Spot gold plunged intraday below $5,100, falling over 1% to $5,080.88 per ounce. Spot silver dropped over 1.5% to $82.19 per ounce. The U.S. dollar index rose 0.56%, closing at 99.316 at the end of the trading day.

Regarding U.S.-Iran tensions, according to CCTV News, Iranian Foreign Minister Amir Abdollahian stated that Iran is prepared for a ground invasion by U.S. forces. He also refused to negotiate with the U.S. and said Iran has not requested a ceasefire.

Additionally, Xinhua News Agency, citing The Politico, reported that the U.S. is currently deploying additional personnel and resources to support the war effort for at least 100 days or even until September. Latest updates>>

Amid the U.S.-Iran conflict, oil and gas prices surged, and expectations for Federal Reserve rate cuts were also dampened.

There remains a risk of further oil price increases. Goldman Sachs warned that developments in the coming weeks could determine the future direction of international oil prices for a long period. If the blockade of the Strait of Hormuz extends for several weeks, international oil prices could break through the $100 per barrel mark.

According to Xinhua, Iran stated that it has not closed the Strait of Hormuz. During wartime, Iran has the right to control passage and navigation through the strait, and ships from the U.S., Israel, and European countries are prohibited from passing.

Minneapolis Fed President Neel Kashkari said that the escalation of U.S.-Iran tensions adds uncertainty to the U.S. economic outlook, making the Federal Reserve’s interest rate policy more unpredictable. He initially expected, by early 2026, that as inflation pressures eased, the Fed would have room to cut rates once. However, facing this new shock, policymakers must observe its duration and impact.

On March 5, the CME FedWatch Tool indicated that there is even a 13.7% chance that the Federal Reserve will not cut interest rates at all this year.